A revamped desk for Miss B's room

I've been looking for a desk for Miss B's room.

And I found a super cute retro wooden school desk from the 70's or 80's on an auction site in New Zealand called trademe.

It needed a little work.

So to work Miss B and I went. The first step was to clean off the dirt and spiderwebs and stickers. Miss B was happy to deal with the stickers, but the spiderwebs were Mum's job.

Next we sanded off the felt tip marks and sticker residue. I used an electric sander because I had one, but hand sanding would be just as good.

 Its already looking better.

I decided to undercoat with some budget all purpose white paint I already had and then to spray a top coat with gloss white so there wouldn't be brush or roller marks visible.

I rolled as much of the undercoat as I could then used a brush for the corners. As it is going to be subjected to the rough and tumble of Miss B, I did three lots of undercoat, then a light sand.

After the undercoat had dried I used this brand of spray paint ( this can says clear gloss but I used the white gloss for this project).

Two coats of top coat and the job was done. This is the finished article.

The stripe on the side is a light effect, I swear!
Miss B is delighted and so am I. The whole project took 3 days but it was worth it. All Miss B's art and stationary supplies fit under the lid which lifts up. A great bonus in the never-ending battle for domestic organisation.

See you next time.

How to turn an old wood bookcase into a stylish classic.

February garage month seems to have extended into March and on into April.


As it is taking so long, due to work and life getting in the way,  I thought a smaller project to revitalize my sense of achievement was in order.


 I have an old pine bookcase that has been in almost every room in our house at one time or another.  It's last incarnation was  in my wardrobe. However The Bloke has been set to work in there after a bit of blog surfing inspiration, so the bookcase has moved by default into our upstairs lounge.


The problem is that it just doesn't go with the decor and it looks frumpy and tired. Not to mention it seems to be a junk magnet where everything that doesn't have a defined home ends up, so it's messy too.


I'd had enough of looking at it and decided to take action.


Off to my second home Bunnings hardware store for some white gloss spray paint I tottered.


I used a paint with a primer and top coat in one.

This is the brand I used. I chose gloss white.

This is the bookcase when it was in my wardrobe.

I cleaned it really well but I didn't sand it back first, and I didn't undercoat it. Just sprayed the gloss white all-in-one primer and top coat. If I was doing it again, I would undercoat with regular white interior/exterior paint, as it would be cheaper. 

This is the first spray coat going on. 

I just kept adding coats until I was happy with the coverage. I did three coats in total. 

Here is the finished article

Then comes the fun part...styling.

and there it is, a classic white bookcase. See you next time.

February is garage month

Where did January go? I swear it was here one minute and gone the next. Did I make the most of it? Do I even remember it?

Oh dear, well I'll just move on to February then...

To ensure I'm making the most of this month, it's garage sorting time.

Our garage seems to harbor everything but my car. Each time I fight my way through the piles of random junk that accumulates here to get to the laundry, I feel my blood pressure rise. Something has to be done.

Oh Pinterest, my muse, my inspiration,  my husband's nemesis,  what ideas do you have for me and my garage?

Ahhhhh...perfect.

Here is a wee peek of the garage  before and the work progressing.

Firstly this is the Pinterest inspiration from Sawdust and Paperscraps blog.

This is our garage before shot...horrifying...

Are you feeling my pain? Out went a trailer load to the rubbish tip, another to the charity shop.
The rest was sorted into like catagories, picnic supplies, Christmas decorations, Halloween,
photo albums, craft supplies, children's things I can't part with, etc. Each catagory was placed into a 60L plastic see-through bin (or several bins in the case of Christmas decorations). Now the storage unit is being built to house those bins.

I also really wanted a place for my sewing machine and craft supplies. There is just nowhere for a dedicated space inside the house, so the garage it is. But more on the craft space another time.

Here are a few pics of the workers (The Bloke and Miss B) along with the work-in-progress. Stay tuned for the finished result by the end (hopefully) of Feb.


                                      Miss B hard at work pre-painting the Hardy panels

A blank canvas

A hint of what's to come.

Can't wait to see the end result!

Of Christmases past

The Day is almost upon me and once again I'm not as organised as I'd like. Poor Miss B has been sick for two days and is beside herself that she'll be sick for Christmas.

Miss B 's worries got me thinking about some of the Christmas disasters we've had over the years. Looking back is always good for a laugh, but at the time it really did seem overwhelming. Here are just a couple of the standouts.

Waking up Christmas morning to  find two children with chickenpox ( I'm sure that wasn't on my wish list). Did you know that you can use a paste made of baking soda and water to help stop the itching? And soaking in a bath with a cup full of baking soda is soothing too. This is a life saver when every chemist/drug store is closed. Yes we live in a place where EVERYTHING is closed on Christmas.

Travelling to our wonderful friend's house for a much anticipated Christmas luau-themed celebration, only to have one of our Misses, who will remain nameless, throw such a tantrum (loud and prolonged) that we had to leave. I did feel quite sorry for myself as I sat down to my Christmas dinner of toast that night.

But the worst by far... heading off to the family gathering only to realise, due to some communication problem (that would be The Bloke not listening!) no-one had bought his mother present. Eek!

Whenever I remember that awful moment of realisation, I know it won't get worse than that (was that me tempting fate there?)

So onwards and upwards, to Christmas and beyond...

It's almost Christmas

I adore Christmas. Every year I plan a lavish decorating theme and a feast of epic proportion.  And although I never quite live up to this fantasy inside my mind, I don't lose hope that this will be the year I sail calmly through the season,  wafting baubles and home made mince tarts in my perfectly coiffured wake.

The reality is that there is limited time, energy, and money to create the Christmas of my dreams. So this year I have decided to start preparations early.

To address the limited finances, I have been shopping for decorations at the charity shop. These el cheapo decorations, coupled with a little spray paint and a ton of glitter provide loads of decorative options for very little cash.

I also scored three sets of lights and a little bit of Christmas-themed crockery, which never goes amiss.

Here are a few of my refurbished Christmas finds...

 I found three of these pine cone candles. They were an ugly worn matt gold which had rubbed off most of the cone tips. A sad looking trio. The before photo was lost due to a camera glitch, so you'll have to take my word for how un-festival they looked.

Off to Bunnings I went and purchased silver spray paint ($10.95) and silver glitter ($4 for three vials of super sparkly glitter).

Now I have three beautiful sparkling candles. Note they are for decoration only, not to be lit.

I found several bags of pre-loved decorations for $3, and gave them a spray with silver and a good sprinkle of glitter. Then I used my trusty hot glue gun to attach several different shaped ones to a traditional flax woven kite ( Maori for bag).

My best find was three of these faux pine wreaths for $1 each.

A little unfurling of the pine stems...

A quick wrap with last year's tinsel...

and a few more of the sprayed and glittered decorations glued into place...

And voila...

Instant Christmas cheer...

Home again

Well, I've actually been home for a few weeks now. But time did that funny thing, where one day it's October and the next day it's almost Christmas. I just lost a month and don't even know where it went.

Of course being nearly Christmas is no hardship because I am a girl who loves that Merry Season.

But before we plunge headlong into the Christmas spirit, let me tell you a bit about Spain.

It was everything I had dreamed it would be...

October was a great month to go. The bulk of the tourists come in Aug and Sept, so things are a little less busy.

The weather was fine and sunny with an occasional thunder storm to keep it fresh. I missed a heat wave up to 35° C the week before I arrived.

I ate fantastic food and drank smooth as silk red wine.

Swam in the Mediterranean sea

Toured 10th century Arabian baths

Visited a 13th century cathedral and more churches than I can recall

Celebrated with the locals at the Binisalem wine festival.

Climbed mountain tracks and wondered streets that have been walked by other people just like me for hundreds of years.

And of course had long reminiscences with my friend of 30 years.

                                     

                                                  Now lets get stuck into Christmas...